Old Is New

In the mid-Nineties designer Todd Oldham sat comfortably atop the fashion food chain. His quirky, colorful clothes were a hit with everyone from the critics to Fran Drescher (who regularly wore them on The Nanny), and every supermodel worth her salt took a turn on his catwalk. So it came as something of a surprise when, in 1998, citing a tough retail climate and saying his heart wasn’t in it anymore, Oldham walked away from the business. In the years since, he’s turned his attention to interiors, designing furniture for La-Z-Boy and hosting the Bravo series Top Design. But it seems he never really soured on clothes. In September the soft-spoken Texas native was named creative director of Old Navy, where he will oversee the design teams and steer the aesthetic vision. He also plans to debut an in-house Todd Oldham collection at the chain’s 900-plus stores. Will Drescher, who has appeared in Old Navy ads in recent years, serve as fit model?